My Formula For Lunchtime Success

I’ve always packed my lunch for work, but I’m not sure why. Maybe because I always brought my lunch to school, maybe because I grew up watching my Dad pack a lunch for work (a sandwich, a yogurt and an apple, if I had to guess), or maybe because I just can’t stomach paying $10 for a sandwich day in and day out. When I was dieting, bringing my own lunch was the only way I could be sure to follow my plan. Now I see bringing my lunch as the best way to guarantee that I will have a yummy meal that will get me through the afternoon.

I don’t have much time to spend fixing my lunch, but I’ve developed a formula that makes it easy to put something together quickly.

  1. I start with a Chobani yogurt for a mid-morning snack. (Can you believe I didn’t like Greek yogurt at all until I discovered Chobani?)
  2. The large plastic container has a simple salad (lettuce, tomato, a spritz of dressing)
  3. The small plastic container has leftovers from dinner (for this picture it was a stuffed pepper)
  4. The orange is to satisfy my sweet tooth after lunch.
  5. The apple is to tide me over through my drive home from work.

I also have a stash of snacks at work–like my favorite Cliff Chocolate Brownie Z-Bars–if I need an afternoon snack.

Since my family doesn’t like to eat leftovers, I usually have plenty of options for my lunch, but if we’ve had a busy week and I haven’t cooked dinner at home (or if we’ve had a hungry week and there aren’t any leftovers) I always have Lean Cuisine “spa cuisine” entrees or Amy’s meals in the freezer.

I enjoy my lunches so much that I even bring them to lunch meetings at the office. I’d rather eat something I know I will like than risk having to eat gloppy pasta or greasy stir fry. (Although if they serve my favorite type of brownie, I’m not too ashamed to take one of those!)

What do you eat for lunch?

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8 Responses to My Formula For Lunchtime Success

  1. Miz says:

    I still havent tried CHOBANI.
    now, I fear, it's becoming my "thing"
    that Ive never ever tried 🙂 or read harry potter or done the jillian shred.
    like that 🙂

  2. As I work at home, I don't have to pack (or buy) a lunch, so often it's similar to yours. Leftovers!! I especially love leftover grilled chicken with salad or a turkey burger. We will often grill extras specifically for this purpose, because my husband likes to take a lunch too. He says his favorite snack ever is Chobani strawberry banana.

  3. I eat Chobani while reading Harry Potter, watching Star Trek AND doing Jillian Shred. I AM HARDCORE!

  4. steena says:

    I've always packed my lunch for basically the same reason, I'm able to pack good healthy foods, and not dish out $7-10 for preservative filled foods from sandwich shops. The other thing about sandwich shops is they don't have much for healthy sides, other than baked potato chips.

  5. I pack my lunch on school days too. I like knowing that I'm guaranteed something healthy and something that I have control of. My family hates leftovers too. So annoying. But, good for lunch, so that works.

  6. I never used to like yogurt either, before Chobani. Just had some for my mid-morning, post-yoga snack today:) I was in a hurry to get to work so today I had a frozen dinner which is my "emergency" back up plan.

  7. Ditto! I used to hate Greek yogurt and didn't know what all the hype was about. I just had it on top of fruit for my dessert. Love Chobani!

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